Actos Bladder Cancer Lawsuits Heat Up

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Actos bladder cancer lawsuits are a massive concern for hundreds of Washington diabetes patients and thousands more around the country. Actos (pioglitazone), one of the few prescription drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat type 2 diabetes, has now been proven to be far more detrimental than the FDA had previously suggested.

The FDA last summer made the attempt to switch millions of diabetes patients from the deadly defective drug Avandia to Actos, however, the move has proven to be fatal in some cases due to the risk of bladder cancer. Takeda, Asia’s biggest drugmaker and producer of Actos, is now facing as many as 10,000 Actos bladder cancer claims after U.S. regulators found last year the drug was linked to the disease.

U.S. District Judge Rebecca Doherty in Lafayette, Louisiana, was appointed by a judges panel as the presiding judge in December, has taken the first steps in resolving the cases by appointing 19 plaintiffs’ lawyers to manage litigation involving U.S. claims. This is an important move since the first hearing on the cases is set for March 22, according to court filings.

In the court filings, beyond the allegations of the drug causing bladder cancer, the plaintiffs also claim that Takeda (and co-defendant Eli Lilly & Co.) withheld information about the risk and failed to provide adequate warnings. Due to these allegations around the world, the Japanese drug company pulled Actos off the market in Germany and France last year after it was linked to an increased cancer risk in those countries. However, regardless of the FDA’s findings of the drug’s connection to bladder cancer, the company has yet to pull the drug off of the market in the US.

Most likely because Actos is the company’s top-seller with sales of 387.9 billion yen ($4.8 billion) last fiscal year, covering 27% of the Takeda’s revenue. With those kinds of numbers, it’s hard for a company to pass up putting a few people’s lives at risk. The victims, on the other hand, disagree with that business model.

Phillips Law Firm can help you with your Defective Drug claim.

At Phillips Law Firm our lawyers are dedicated to getting you justice and compensation you deserve. Call Phillips Law Firm at 1-800-708-6000, we are waiting to assist you 24/7, offering a free case evaluation. Remember our no fee promise. If we do not recover anything for you, you do not owe us an attorney fee

It is important to act immediately. Do not let the window of opportunity for your case close as all cases have statues of limitations. You deserve justice and we are here to help.

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Two Tragic Transit Bus Accidents Highlight King County Metro Safety Concerns

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Two tragic transit bus accidents in one week, one resulting in serious personal injuries and the other in potentially wrongful death, has left a lot of people in the Puget Sound area scratching their heads. Those with long and not-so-long memories may be wondering whether some of the safety issues that had plagued the organization in the past once again rearing their ugly heads.

In the first incident this week, a 51-year-old woman stepped off the curb on Third Avenue at Pine Street in Downtown Seattle at around 8:30 am yesterday morning and was struck by a northbound bus. She remains in the intensive care unit with potentially life threatening personal injuries.

The second victim, a 48-year-old Bellevue woman, died after she was struck by the bus. She apparently had just stepped off the bus at her usual stop in East Bellevue at Northeast 10th Street and Northup Way after saying good-bye to the driver and several other passengers, when the bus left and the driver said he heard a “Thump, thump.” He stopped and found her under the bus. She died at the scene.

These two horrible incidents highlights the need for a safety review. In the past King County Metro has had some issues with training, particularly with its handicapped shuttle service, which employs a private contract driver service with different training and background standards and has had some serious incidents. It wasn’t until recently that regular transit buses have begun to eliminate dangerous lift ramps for buses without the steep stairs and safer ramps that merely extend to the sidewalk.

This King County Metro blurs the lines between private and public. It’s funding woes have been highly publicized, with cuts in essential routes that spurred on embarrassing rider uprisings that resulted in public protests last year.

Phillips Law Firm hopes that these serious incidents are not the result of Metro’s attempts to shore up budgeting shortfalls through cutting public safety.

Phillips Law Firm can help with your injury or accident case. Fill out the FREE case review.

When you properly prepare your vehicle and use extra caution, your chances of avoiding an accident are much better. Unfortunately accidents occur at the negligence of other people, causing devastation to you and your loved ones. If you have been injured in a car accident call our personal injury attorneys at Phillips Law Firm at (800) 708-6000. We offer a FREE case consultation 24/7 and offer a no fee promise. Our no free promise means that you do not have to pay an attorney fee if we do not recover compensation for you.

Visit our Vehicle Accident main page to learn more…

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How Does A Concussion In A Car Accident Effect My Child?

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Don’t get us wrong, protecting people for open head injuries is fantastic. An open head wound can result in a skull fracture resulting in fragments entering the brain. If that doesn’t happen, draining blood and brain fluid (cerebrospinal fluid, which creates a buffer between the skull and the brain) can kill the victim within minutes.

Even though concussions are closed head injuries, they can be also be very dangerous and potentially deadly. They can result in a break in the tissue surrounding the brain known as a brain hemorrhage. This is very hard to detect up front and can trickle blood into the skull causing a build up of pressure that eventually can kill the victim.

Concussions can also cause problems with:

  • Headache
  • Concentration
  • Memory
  • Judgment
  • Balance
  • Coordination

These symptoms are both in adults and children, but some studies have shown that the long term effects on concussions suffered by children in car accidents can have a profound effect on their brain development in the future.

Concussions and Children

The study, conducted by a team headed by Keith Owen Yeates, a neuropsychologist at Ohio State University’s Center for Biobehaviorial Health, was published online Monday in Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. Researchers aimed to identify which kids may be most at risk for lingering symptoms.

The study consisted of 186 subjects aged 8 to 15 who had suffered mild concussions and other mild brain injuries and had been treated hospitals in Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. The published results were based on parents’ reports of symptoms up to 12 months after the injuries.

The researchers specifically chose brain injuries that are considered “mild” (no more than half an hour of unconsciousness). Out of the test subjects 60% of kids with concussions or other brain trauma (74 children) had no loss of consciousness.

“In most kids with these injuries, symptoms resolve within a few months but the study results suggest that problems may linger for up to about 20 percent,” said Yeates, the study’s author.

After all of the response data was tallied, researchers found that children with even relatively mild concussions can have persistent attention and memory problems a year after their injuries. They found that 20% (15 children) who lost consciousness had lingering forgetfulness or other non-physical problems a year after their injury.

Problems like forgetfulness were more likely to linger than fatigue, dizziness and other physical complaints.

The study showed that losing consciousness seemed to be a much more telling sign of future complications. Children who lost consciousness or who had other mild head trauma that caused brain abnormalities on imaging tests, compared with kids who didn’t get knocked out or who had normal imaging test results.such as:

  • Forgetfulness
  • Difficulty paying attention
  • Headaches
  • Fatigue

Furthermore, they found 6 of the test subjects who had shown abnormal brain scans had lingering headaches or other physical problems three months after being injured.

“What parents want to know is if my kid is going to do OK. Most do OK, but we have to get better at predicting which kids are going to have problems,” Yeates said. “[Some children] may need temporary accommodations, including extra time taking school tests, or wearing sunglasses if bright light gives them headaches.”

Post Car Accident Treatment

When emergency medical staff, both at the scene and in the emergency room, examine the child, they must be vigilant. Just because it is a closed head injury doesn’t mean it isn’t a very serious situation that could have lasting effects on the child.

“[Concussions] should not necessarily be treated as minor injuries,” Dr. Frederick Rivara, Archives’ editor, said in a journal editorial.

Rivara, a pediatrician and University of Washington researcher has conducted similar showing that mild traumatic brain injuries, including concussions, in children should be properly prioritized and require far more study in order to determine the real effect, what type of treatment and activity restriction is needed on children in order to curb the number of head injuries resulting in future developmental consequences of head trauma.

It is imperative that parents, after a serious car accident, make sure that their children’s head injuries are properly examined, addressed, and monitored. Also, following the accident, they need to monitor their children’s brain function, memory, behavior, and keep a close eye on grades. They should also have regular candid conversations with teachers and care givers in order to determine if they have observed changes.

Seattle Car Accident Lawyers

The violent impact of a rear-end or front end crash can have a severe effect on children. In the case of spinal cord injuries or brain injuries, the child’s development can get severely hampered, affecting their physical and cognitive abilities throughout their lives. No parent wants to see his or her child grow up with a disability because of a car accident that may have been avoidable by displaying just a little bit more caution.

Phillips Law Firm can help you with your Vehicle Accident claim.

At Phillips Law Firm our lawyers are dedicated to getting you justice and compensation you deserve. Call Phillips Law Firm at 1-800-708-6000, we are waiting to assist you 24/7, offering a free case evaluation. Remember our no fee promise. If we do not recover anything for you, you do not owe us an attorney fee

It is important to act immediately. Do not let the window of opportunity for your case close as all cases have statues of limitations. You deserve justice and we are here to help.

Visit our Vehicle Accident main page for more information.
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Are The Devices In My New Car Increasing My Chances For A Car Accident?

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Distracted driving has been a big concern for Washington State as well as across the country. In 2010, Washington legislators passed a law that issued $124 tickets to people seen driving while on a cell phone without using a hands free device. Unfortunately, studies have shown that just because someone doesn’t have a phone glued to their face obstructing 50% of their peripheral vision doesn’t mean that they aren’t distracted and just as much of a danger on the road.

Drivers who use handheld devices are four times more likely to get into a serious crash, and engaging in a phone conversation even using a hands-free device reduces the focus on driving by 37%. This much of a distraction is tantamount to drunk diving. According to NHTSA statistics, 5,474 people were killed and about 448,000 were personally injured in distracted driving accidents in 2009.

So, is that flashy new device glowing on your dashboard making you safer? Ray LaHood says no.

NHTSA Hearings With Car Manufacturers

New federal guidelines laid out by LaHood and published in February in the Federal Register recommend that manufacturers make it impossible for drivers to perform many functions while a vehicle is in motion. These functions include:

  • Ability to send or look at text messages
  • Browse the Internet
  • Tweet or use social media such as Facebook
  • Enter information in navigation systems
  • Enter 10-digit phone numbers
  • Receive any type of text information of more than 30 characters unrelated to driving

Over the past two years there have been several summits hosted by both the congress and senate to highlight the dangers of distracted driving. This push towards awareness of the real dangers have resulted in a series of 3 hearings–the first of which was yesterday—in which automakers laid out their commitment to safety by stating that they can make up fleets lines of vehicles safer as they continue to install electronic products that car buyers want to use while behind the wheel.

“When a device or feature is integrated into an automobile’s driver-vehicle interfaces, it is designed to be used in a way that helps the driver keep their eyes on the road and hands on the steering wheel,” Rob Strassburger, vice president for safety at the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, told the NHTSA committee in prepared testimony.

The idea of not installing features that consumers want is a tough call for manufacturers who know that features could be the make or break point in the decision making process when the customer is standing in the showroom ready to buy a new car. Even though safety is a major selling point for vehicles over the last two decades, features are the “wow-factor” that manufacturers may be reluctant to budge on.

“Our first goal is to reduce the complexity and the amount of time required to use electronic devices,”Strickland said. “Our second goal is to disable operations of various in-vehicle electronic devices while driving, unless the devices are intended for passenger use and cannot be reasonably accessed or seen by the driver.”

How Effective Will The Guidelines Be?

These guidelines wouldn’t restrict the use of other electronic alternatives used by the driver if they choose to drive distracted. This is an unfortunate reality surrounding these new policies, however, the main point is to keep driver’s eyes on the road and away from the display unless absolutely necessary.

One of the ways of doing this is to utilize voice command as much as possible for virtually every aspect of the operation of the car from the radio to the temperature of the car. The technology already exists, and though generally only available in higher end vehicle, it is destined to be added to all vehicles as competition and development costs dictate.

Another suggestion forwarded by Strassburger to the committee was to raise the display slightly in the configuration of the dash in order to allow the driver to gain information at a glance.

He urged NHTSA to finalize a single package of guidelines so that manufacturers can create systems for integrating portable devices into the overall on-board electronics scheme safely.

NHTSA plans to hold additional hearings on the proposed guidelines Thursday in Chicago and Friday in Los Angeles.

Let Phillips Law Firm help you with your injury accident or defective device claim.

The new features in cars are generally as dangerous as people utilize them. Yes, web browsing and live streaming are a little ridiculous and shouldn’t really be allowed in a car, but drivers have been punching away at radio dials in cars for decades now. Has that activity resulted in accidents? Yes. Does the fact that the radio and other features will be voice actived help? Without research, we can’t say, but we can hope, because all of those new features are admittedly pretty neat.

If you or someone you know has suffered a serious personal injury after getting into a car accident with a distracted driver, then you need skilled legal council to represent you to assure that you get the compensation you deserve. Call the Seattle car accident lawyers at Phillips Law Firm for a free consultation.

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What Is Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS)?

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There are some victims who seem to never lose the pain. The area of the injury has persistent and ongoing pain that doesn’t cease regardless of different treatments. This is known as Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). Though not full understood by the medical community, this is a very real condition whose consequences can be life changing.

CRPS is best characterized as soft tissue and nerve damage that, for some reason, does not heal correctly or totally. Depending on the nerve and tissue effected, the severity and results of the CRPS changes for each patient.

How Do I Know If I Have CRPS?

If you have it, there’s no doubt, you’ll know. After a auto accident or work related injury, this condition usually manifests itself in an extremity, however, not in all cases. And regardless of where the victim is effected, muscles or joints, the pain is consistent and persistent, and in some cases unbearable.

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), “The key symptom of CRPS is continuous, intense pain out of proportion to the severity of the injury, which gets worse rather than better over time.”

Some of the symptoms are:

  • Excessive sweating
  • Extreme sensitivity to touch
  • Pathological changes in bone and skin
  • Severe burning pain
  • Tissue swelling

Please keep in mind that currently there is no cure for CRPS, which means that the ailment is still highly misunderstood and treatment is all over the board. Medical researchers and others in the medical community have tried a variety different treatment methods including pharmaceuticals, holistic treatments such as acupuncture, and even medical marijuana, however, consensus has not arrived at a single treatment.

What the medical community has come to consensus on is that there are two types of CRPS and they come in stages.

Stages of CRPS

According to the Center for Advanced Orthopedics and Pain Management, there are there are usually three stages associated with the syndrome. Each stage is marked by progressive changes in the skin, nails, muscles, joints, ligaments and bones.

Stage 1 – This generally lasts from 1 to 3 months and is represented by severe pain at the site of the injury. Stage one is characterized by:

  • Muscle spasm
  • Joint stiffness
  • Restricted mobility
  • Rapid hair and nail growth
  • Vasospasm or changes in color and temperature of the skin

Stage 2 – This typically lasts from 3 to 6 months. In stage two, the pain intensifies and can begin to effect the patient’s quality of life. Stage two is characterized by:

  • Swelling increases
  • Hair growth diminishes
  • Nails become cracked, brittle, grooved, and spotty
  • Osteoporosis becomes severe and diffuse
  • Joints thicken
  • Muscles atrophy

Stage 3 – As stage three approaches, changes in the skin and bones become irreversible. Pain becomes persistent and may spread to the entire limb. Occasionally the limb is crooked or twisted and bone softening is more dispersed. Stage three is characterized by:

  • Marked muscle atrophy
  • Severely limited mobility of the affected area
  • Contractions of the muscles and tendons that flex the joints

Types of CRPS

As stated above, there is now cure for CRPS and treatment is still in its discovery phase, but the medical community has concluded that there are two types of CRPS. These are different from the stages.

Type I – Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD)

  • Type one is the injury event itself where the healing process does not involve characteristic relief in pain.
  • Increase in pain.
  • Allodynia, a condition in which pain results from a non-injurious stimulus to the skin.
  • Hyperalgesia where the pain is disproportionate to any inciting event.
  • Changes in skin blood flow, color changes, and temperature changes more than 1.1°C difference from the homologous body part.
  • This diagnosis is excluded by the existence of conditions that would otherwise account for the degree of pain and dysfunction.

Type II – Causalgia

  • Allodynia, or hyperalgesia not necessarily limited to the distribution of the injured nerve.
  • Limited movement in the limb regardless of pain.
  • Changes in bone or blood flow that effects the position of the extremity.

Washington Personal Injury Attorney

CRPS is a serious problem that can have very real consequences on a victim of personal injury. Not only does it increase the severity of the injury, it may require further legal action in order beyond the initial personal injury lawsuit in order to address the increased expense and ingoing need for treatment. It also may require further compensation for increased pain and suffering and quality of life.

Phillips Law Firm can help you with your Personal Injury claim.

At Phillips Law Firm our lawyers are dedicated to getting you justice and compensation you deserve. Call Phillips Law Firm at 1-800-708-6000, we are waiting to assist you 24/7, offering a free case evaluation. Remember our no fee promise. If we do not recover anything for you, you do not owe us an attorney fee

It is important to act immediately. Do not let the window of opportunity for your case close as all cases have statues of limitations. You deserve justice and we are here to help.

Visit our Personal Injury main page for more information.
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FDA Expands Safety Probe As Propecia Class Action Lawsuit Looms

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Propecia side effects rumors surrounding erectile dysfunction started almost immediately after it was introduced to the market in 1998. It’s no wonder, that’s also one of the side effects of its active ingredient, finasteride, originally a treatment for prostate cancer. Now it is one of the most popular hair loss treatment pills on the market, touting the ability to not only stop hair loss, but in some cases reverse it.

Since its introduction, Propecia has made its manufacturer, Merck, billions of dollars. All the while Merck was failing to mention what it already knew, that the drug could potentially cause serious erectile dysfunction problems. Now, new studies suggest that condition could be permanent in some men.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) labeled the drug with the erectile dysfunction side effect in 2006 and has just recently found that Propecia may increase the male patient’s chances of contracting prostate cancer. This is bad since the vast majority of the clients are men. This is also surprising, since finasteride is a prostate cancer treatment.

FDA Safety Probe

The FDA has begun contacting the thousands of men who have complained through official and unofficial channels about being effected by the side effects. However, both FDA and Merck spokespersons maintain a policy of silence to much of the media.

According to John Peige, columnist for the Baltimore Sun, the FDA emails sent out to the victims of Propecia say, in part, “We are sorry to learn about your experience with the drug Propecia (finasteride) and the difficulties that you are now enduring. As you may already know, sometimes, additional side effects and safety issues that were not identified in clinical studies may occur after a drug is marketed.”

The FDA urges anyone affected by Propecia to “formally document your case via the MedWatch reporting system. The information you provide will be added to FDA’s post-marketing safety database and reviewed by the post marketing safety staff.”

Though many men have contacted the FDA, there are hundreds who have decided to engage attorneys instead and are now in the throws of starting a class action lawsuit.

Propecia Class Action Lawsuit

At the end of this month on March 29th, the United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, will begin their hearing session in San Diego, will consider the legal petition for the centralization of dangerous drug lawsuits against Propecia.

The petition regarding Propecia was filed by plaintiff Christopher Masefield and asks for the centralization of almost a dozen federal lawsuits involving the hair loss drug. Merck, the maker of the drug, has been the subject of lawsuits in various federal districts that allege the drug failed to adequately warn of possibly irreversible male sexual dysfunction, clinical depression, and male breast cancer.

Many men filing lawsuits have experienced:

  • Erectile Dysfunction – Impotency or inability to create or retain an erection in order to engage in sexual activity. This can seriously effect quality of life and ability to procreate.
  • Male Breast Cancer – This is particularly dangerous because men are neither trained nor informed that they need to check for this very deadly disease.
  • Prostate Cancer – This is one of the most prevalent diseases to strike men and kills thousands of men every year nationally.
  • Lowered sexual desire – This is sort of counter productive to stopping hair loss since many men do it to retain and youthful and attractive look to attract women.
  • Lowered amount of semen – This can directly effect ability to procreate and may inhibit a man from starting or further grow their family.
  • Lowered quality of life – An active sex life has been shown to lead to stress relief, lowered instance of depression, heart health, and lowered chance of stroke.
  • Anxiety – This can effect relationships at home and at work. Anxiety has also been shown to lead to insomnia, weight gain, and substance abuse.
  • Depression – Depression is a serious problem that can lead to professional and personal consequences. This can also lead to suicide ideation.

Phillips Law Firm can help with your defective drug. Fill out the FREE case review.

By filing a Propecia lawsuit you can receive the compensation you deserve. Depending on your situation, you will either have an individual lawsuit or be added to the MDL already in progress. After a quick interview, the experienced Phillips Law Firm attorneys will be able to tell you your options and help you seek justice.

If you or a loved one are taking Propecia or any other derivative of Finasteride it is important that you contact legal council that has experience in protecting patients from giant pharmaceutical companies. Call Phillips Law Firm for a consultation on your legal options.

Contact Phillips Law Firm at (800) 708-6000. We offer a FREE case consultation 24/7 and offer a no fee promise. Our no free promise means that you do not have to pay an attorney fee if we do not recover compensation for you.

 

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Are New Seattle Greenways Going To Reduce Bicycle and Pedestrian Accidents?

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Portland has been experimenting with Greenways and get ready, because they’re about to come to Seattle. A lot of people in Seattle make fun of Portland for being a little too “granola.” Yet, the similarities between the inhabitants of Seattle and Portland are far more distinct than perhaps both cities would like to admit. One of those glaring similarities is the activity levels of the inhabitants.

Both Seattleites and Portlanders love to be outside walking, running, biking, hiking and doing pretty much anything that gets them exposed to nature. That’s why many people move here. This means that both cities also enjoy a robust biking and pedestrian community. Unfortunately, this also means that bicycle and pedestrian safety becomes a major concern for city leaders and civic planners.

Greenways and Safety

For the past 5 years the Greenway plan has been underway in Portland and according to many planners and advocates, including Portland Mayor Sam Adams, they have been very successful in keeping bicyclists and pedestrians safe.

What is a Greenway?

A Greenway is not just about bikes and pedestrians. It also includes structural, environmental, and attitude changes. They are designated routes that are well marked through low traffic residential street to divert bike and foot traffic away from busy arterials and towards commercial destinations through parks and other green spaces. This is intended to lower accidents and increase use of parks and paths.

  • Structural changes – Curbs are extended in order to make green natural drainage points, widened access points, and forced slowing when taking curves. Speed bumps are added to slow traffic. Though-ways are cut off along routes to discourage speeding through residential areas. Speed limits are lowered to 20 mph.
  • Environmental changes – Drainage points are made into gravel, sand, and dirt green spaces with low ground plants in order to not obstruct view. This cleans the water before it goes into the city drainage system because currently, thousands of gallons of untreated chemicals and oil are spilling into Puget Sound on a daily basis.
  • Attitude changes – This will take bike lanes off of main arterials and set them into safer side streets, thus lessening the amount of bike traffic and changing attitudes and awareness amongst drivers.

According to the Portland Bureau of Transportation, the goal of Greenways is to:

  • Reduce auto cut-through – Taking residential streets in order to avoid traffic will be harder along designated Greenways.
  • Provide safer bicycling and pedestrian connections – Pavement markings and signage are a big part of the program in order to alert drivers that they are on a Greenway.
  • Improved crossings and curb ramps- These make bicycle and pedestrian mobility easier and safer.
  • Reduce auto speeds – Speed bumps and amended speed limits in certain residential streets.
  • Improved signals – Improved crossings at main streets, longer crossing, clearer crosswalks.
  • Provide more “eyes on the street” – They also speculate that more people out on the street bicycling and walking leads to safer streets!

Effects On Traffic and Safety

City officials are going to run into some automatic objections due to some bad blood over past projects. Some bike lanes in the city have garnered some objections as some drivers have complained that they obstruct or slow the flow of traffic. Officials say Greenways directly address this issue by taking bikes off of the road.

“Well, they’re non-arterial streets with low traffic volume and low speeds that we improve for bicycle and pedestrian travel,” said Sandra Woods of the Bike Master Plan told KOMO news.

The first Greenway is expected to start on 43rd and Stone Way. Other projects are expected to start later this year in the Central District to the University District. These will connect on and off with the Burke Gilman Trail already there. However, many people will notice some changes and increased foot and bike traffic on their street with a bill of $150,000 per mile, money already earmarked in 2006 from the “bridge the gap” fund.

Seattle Bicycle Accident Lawyer

If you or someone you know has been seriously injured in a bicycle accident anywhere in Washington State then it is important that they find an experienced personal injury lawyer. Call the Bicycle Accident Attorneys at Phillips Law for a free consultation.

Phillips Law Firm can help with your injury or accident case. Fill out the FREE case review.

When you properly prepare your vehicle and use extra caution, your chances of avoiding an accident are much better. Unfortunately accidents occur at the negligence of other people, causing devastation to you and your loved ones. If you have been injured in a car accident call our personal injury attorneys at Phillips Law Firm at (800) 708-6000. We offer a FREE case consultation 24/7 and offer a no fee promise. Our no free promise means that you do not have to pay an attorney fee if we do not recover compensation for you.

Visit our Vehicle Accident main page to learn more…

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Will Stiffer Sentences for DUI Lower Wrongful Death in Washington State?

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Driving under the influence (DUI) in Washington State has been a massive concern for victim’s advocates for a long time now. With widely publicized reports of wrongful death due to DUI such as the death of Washington State Parks Ranger Ed Johanson, who’s funeral was attended by hundreds of people last Saturday, calls for stiffer sentences that had been previously ignored by legislators have now been made even more urgent than they have in the past.

Ranger Johanson’s death was not the only one that helped demonstrate the importance and need for this legislation. The deaths of two teens a week before graduation on Interstate 5 in 2010 by a habitual DUI offender raised a massive cry for change. Then, the death of local game developer after a gaming conference where a drunk girl was actually driving from the passenger side of the car while the driver changed her clothing last year. And not long after that, a Google employee was killed by a driver that was three times over the legal limit of .08 and was so drunk that he beat his chest like gorilla at the scene and threatened to kill more people if he was incarcerated for the crime.

During that last example, exasperated King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg went to the media to air out some concerns he had about the current state of sentencing limits currently on the books in Washington State.

“You would think that with that degree of carnage we would take a pretty tough line on this,” Satterberg told KOMO in a interview in August. “But under the state sentencing guidelines, a person who kills another person while they are drunk driving faces a standard sentencing range of 31 to 41 months.”

The carnage he speaks of refers to the roughly 250 people killed annually by drunken drivers in Washington State. However, the multiple requests by the prosecutor, families of victims, and advocates like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and Phillips Law Firm have come to fruition with the passage of House Bill 2216.

HB 2216 and DUI Sentencing

The bill, which will become law 90 days from the end of the legislative session, increases the prison sentence for a first time offenders from 31- 41 months to 6 to 8 years in prison, the same sentence an individual faces for committing first-degree manslaughter.

Most states with the exception of Alaska, Montana, and Arizona have vehicular homicide laws on the books that define vehicles as potentially deadly weapons if used improperly or irresponsibly. However, with this legislation, Washington has some of the strictest laws against someone drinking, getting into their car and killing an innocent person.

The strictness of the law piggy-backs on previous legislation that makes a person with multiple DUI offenses who kills someone with their car a federal offense. The legislation specifically states that an additional 2 years will be tacked on for every prior offense.

On Friday, Satterberg praised legislators for responding to the pleas victims’ families who were re-victimized by shockingly low sentences. He credited work of Representatives Chris Hurst and Roger Goodman in the House and David Frockt, Adam Kline and Mike Padden in the Senate.

“We have given the families of loved ones lost to drunk drivers some sense of justice,” Satterberg said in a statement. “The increased sentences will not bring back their family members but will send a strong message to drunk drivers that their actions have consequences.”

HB 2216

When it comes to killing someone with your car after you’ve been drinking, the state now recognizes it as tantamount to manslaughter one or child rape, in terms of sentencing. Not the prettiest category to be in when it comes to being viewed in the eyes of the law. However, the way the statute reads it’s pretty explicit.

(1) When the death of any person ensues within three years as a proximate result of injury proximately caused by the driving of any vehicle by any person, the driver is guilty of vehicular homicide if the driver was operating a motor vehicle:

  • (a) While under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug, as defined by RCW 46.61.502; or
  • (b) In a reckless manner; or
  • (c) With disregard for the safety of others.

(2) Vehicular homicide is a class A felony punishable under chapter 9A.20 RCW, except that, for a conviction under subsection (1)(a) of this section, an additional two years shall be added to the sentence for each prior offense as defined in RCW 46.61.5055.

As you can see this law doesn’t stop at just DUI. Reckless driving is may be included, which is defined in RCW 46.61.500 as:

(1) Any person who drives any vehicle in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property is guilty of reckless driving.

So, this could be extended to drivers who are driving with the intent to injure or harass another driver such as in a road rage scenario or racing down the freeway with another car down a crowded freeway.

Will Stiffer Sentences for DUI Lower Wrongful Death in Washington State?

This is the operative question. Washington State has been enjoying an unprecedented era of safety. Not since the 40’s has the state had so few deaths as in 2011. Does this directly correlate to DUI laws? Well, not specifically. Many experts attribute this to the fact that car are so much safer than cars even 20 years ago, that it is no wonder highway deaths are down even in the states with the lightest traffic laws.

You see, not ALL deaths are caused by DUI, only about a third of them are. However, that is an incredible impact. Governor Gregoire instituted the Target Zero program, which is intended to reach zero vehicular deaths of all kinds by 2030. A tall order, but if this law and the proper campaign showing the consequences has as impact as many hope, then this will go a long way to ending DUI deaths in Washington State.

Phillips Law Firm can help you with your Personal Injury claim.

At Phillips Law Firm our lawyers are dedicated to getting you justice and compensation you deserve. Call Phillips Law Firm at 1-800-708-6000, we are waiting to assist you 24/7, offering a free case evaluation. Remember our no fee promise. If we do not recover anything for you, you do not owe us an attorney fee

It is important to act immediately. Do not let the window of opportunity for your case close as all cases have statues of limitations. You deserve justice and we are here to help.

Visit our Personal Injury main page for more information.
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How Can I Aid In Recovery From A Traumatic Brain Injury In A Car Accident?

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Concussions, brain hemorrhages, and mild damage are treatable and can result in full recovery over time. However, according to government figures about 52,000 people with brain injuries die each year and 275,000 are hospitalized, many with persistent, debilitating injuries.

Recovery From TBI

We are fortunate in the Northwest to have some very high quality traumatic brain injury care facilities such as the one at Harborview Medical Center and their affiliates. They treat a large number of car accident victims throughout the Puget Sound and throughout the state.

The first step is immediate diagnosis and treatment, sometimes involving surgery. Once that is done, the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) monitoring can last up to a week to make sure the there is no pressure on the brain and the patient is in close proximity to instantaneous emergency services. Then, the long road to recovery begins.

Recovery from TBI depends on the severity of the injury. The patient can be in a coma or have very little brain activity left. However, conscious patient care can involve:

  • Extended hospital stays – Being in the hospital can still give the patient access to critical care and proximity to surgical rooms if needed.
  • Hospice care – Once the patient is out of the weeds, but is still need of constant care and access to different recovery services on a daily basis, a hospice can provide a more personalized level of care and understanding than some busy hospitals can. They are also generally located on more tranquil grounds and have services that hospitals may not have such as swimming pools, massage care, and TBI recovery specialists.
  • Cognitive therapy – This is a profession that is still in its infancy it seems as professionals take on the daunting task of helping the patient control their wandering thoughts, focus, and start steps on being able to retrain to reading and communicating like they were able to previously.
  • Physical therapy – Loss of movement, misfiring brain, or numbness requires some patients to learn how to walk, move their fingers, and control their movements. This takes time and a patient professional to help them through this often frustrating experience.
  • Surgery – Multiple surgeries and can leave a heavy toll on a patient and can leave them open to infection. Be aware of the long term consequences.
  • Psychological therapy – Studies conducted at the University of Washington have recently shown the depression and personality changes are so common in TBI patients that psychological therapy should be a part of the recovery process.
  • Memory and speech training – This is a very important part of the recovery process that allows the patient to get back to existing in society and rebuilding their personal relationships.
  • Professional Training – This a big part of reintegrating the patient back into their life, however, they may not be able to perform at the same level the had once performed or they may not be able to do their previous job. This doesn’t mean that they can’t live independently and begin another profession that accommodates their unique obstacles (speech, memory, physical, etc).

Amantadine and TBI Recovery

Amantadine is an old influenza drug from the 60’s that seems to be getting a new lease on life if-you-will. This cheap long-generic drug was a little too dangerous to become an over the counter drug because it causes some pretty severe rashes and skin problems as a side effect, but has been prescribed for Parkinson’s disease through the years.

Over the past decade or so, some doctors have started prescribing it to TBI patients after some speculative results and have found that it helps patients with recovery. Now, some research is coming through showing that there are in fact some benefits to patients prescribed the drug.

Researchers conducting a federally funded study published in this month’s New England Journal of Medicine are reporting the first treatment to speed recovery from severe brain injuries caused car crashes. Severely injured patients who were given amantadine got better faster than those who received a dummy medicine.

After four weeks, more people in the flu drug group could give reliable yes-and-no answers, follow commands or use a spoon or hairbrush – things that few of them could do at the start. Far fewer patients who got amantadine remained in a vegetative state, 17% versus 32%.

“This drug moved the needle in terms of speeding patient recovery, and that’s not been shown before,”said neuropsychologist Joseph Giacino of Boston’s Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, co-leader of the study. He added, “It really does provide hope for a population that is viewed in many places as hopeless.”

Since amantadine is so commonly used, he said U.S. troops with severe brain injuries in Iraq or Afghanistan probably get it, or should get it now. Since 2000, some 233,000 troops have suffered traumatic brain injuries, including about 6,100 serious cases, many of them from bomb blasts or shrapnel.

Seattle Personal Injury Attorney

Though the research is in its early stages and we do not endorse a commercial pharmaceutical product, we welcome anything that can help our clients who have suffered TBI. We’ve seen how it can effect a person’s life and their family. That is why it is so important that they get the compensation that they deserve in order to get the best care available to help them through the debilitating injury.

If you or someone you know has suffered from a traumatic brain injury then some of the best advice they can get is to find experienced legal council that can properly negotiate with insurance companies and medical care providers to assure that you get the compensation you deserve. Call the brain injury attorneys at Phillips Law Firm for a free consultation on your legal options.

Phillips Law Firm can help you with your Personal Injury claim.

At Phillips Law Firm our lawyers are dedicated to getting you justice and compensation you deserve. Call Phillips Law Firm at 1-800-708-6000, we are waiting to assist you 24/7, offering a free case evaluation. Remember our no fee promise. If we do not recover anything for you, you do not owe us an attorney fee

It is important to act immediately. Do not let the window of opportunity for your case close as all cases have statues of limitations. You deserve justice and we are here to help.

Visit our Personal Injury main page for more information.
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The Changing Face of Medical Malpractice

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When a patient is effected by medical malpractice through, for example, a botched surgery, misguided prescription, or a tragic birth experience, it is their right to seek just compensation. Unfortunately, there have been parties solely with monetary interests trying to not only influence policy, but also social perception of the issue. You can see this in the recent past with legislation that limits medical malpractice awards and even giving more strength to the defense (the doctors and insurance companies that represent them) to seek ways to vilify the victim. Award limits happened in our home state of Washington, just to be overturned in 2006. Fortunately, it seems that, though they still exist in other parts of the country, these types of practices and policies are slowly, but surely coming to a welcome end. Two examples are below.

Apologies Go A Long Way

This week, celebrity actor James Woods (who ironically won an Emmy for his depiction of a disillusioned lawyer on the show Shark) is supporting a bill in Rhode Island that is based on studies out of Michigan regarding the hospital’s policy on apologies to patients touched by medical malpractice. The reason shy James Woods is involved is that he had a very publicized medical malpractice lawsuit against a Rhode Island Hospital. Woods’ brother, Michael, died of a heart attack at Kent Hospital in 2006. Woods sued the hospital, accusing emergency room staff of not doing enough to save his brother. He settled the lawsuit after the hospital’s CEO apologized and agreed to start an institute in Michael Woods’ name. The bill is intended to allow the hospital to apologize to the victim without the fear of reprisal. It is essentially saying that an apology is not necessarily a clear admittance of guilt. Here’s how medical malpractice policy has generally worked in the past:

  • A patient is effected by medical malpractice.
  • They inform the hospital.
  • The hospital speaks to their lawyers.
  • Communication breaks down.
  • The long drawn out process of settlement or court begins.

What the Michigan study showed was that physicians and institutions that sit down with the victims in an open and compassionate environment. Certainly, there are attorneys present representing their interests, however, the study found that when the defendant and plaintiff talked and the plaintiff was offered an apology, the settlement time and award were nearly 60% less than that of previous medical malpractice proceedings. Not only was this demonstrated in the James Woods case, but also here locally in Seattle last year. Seattle Children’s Hospital had a rash of accidental child poisonings that would have caused any institution to go into silent mode. Yet, Children’s Hospital reacted immediately with opening their doors to the media, state and local investigations, and gave a very candid and public apology. This not only went a long way to cementing their local and national image, but also protected them from what could have been some very expensive and drawn out lawsuits. Instead, settlement proceedings have been quiet. However, this could have been very different, where the institution uses their resources to vilify the victims, a route that has worked in the past, but is considered unsavory by most. HIPAA and Medical Malpractice Medical malpractice lawyers around the country have been keeping their left eye on New York for the past few years as a serious legal issue has been wiggling its way through the judiciary system. It’s surrounding the 2007 ruling, Arons v. Jutkowitz, in which the Court of Appeals held that defendants have a right to interview plaintiffs’ doctors without the consent of the plaintiff if they comply with procedural requirements in the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). HIPAA is specifically in place to protect workers and their families from losing health insurance after losing a job and to give some privacy to their medical information and who can obtain that information. The Arons v. Jutkowitz is counterproductive to the intent of the bill, since the bill has very specific privacy and protections in place. Under HIPAA, defendants must obtain authorization from the plaintiff before conducting interviews with non-party doctors. The reason why this is so important is that it allows defendants to farm for preexisting conditions or medical instances in the patient’s past that they can use against the plaintiff to insinuate that the victim is misleading in some way. This is already done through subpoena of medical records, but testimony is a whole different deal and could include a myriad of questions that veer away from the hard facts within the case. “You can’t have a fair adversarial system if one side has a proprietary interest in a witness,” said Joshua Cohen, president of the New York State Medical Defense Bar Association. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. John DeFrancisco, a Republican from Syracuse, defended the measure, noting that his proposal retains the ability of the defense to question doctors at depositions. In a memo opposing the bill, the Greater New York Hospital Association said the measure would increase malpractice insurance premiums by 6 percent, or $96 million, if enacted. DeFrancisco on Thursday called the estimate “nonsense,” and said no one could predict the fiscal impact.

Medical Malpractice Attorneys

But what this all comes down to is the patient. There are approximately an estimated 250,000 instances of medical malpractice every year in the United States resulting in injury or death. In the face of this, Harvard University determined that less than 2% of the total cost of healthcare in the US was caused by medical malpractice awards and settlements. In fact, they determined that non-required procedures to avoid lawsuits were double the cost to the overall U.S. healthcare system than the lawsuits that they were actually trying to prevent! It is in the best interest of the patient that they find a lawyer that not only understands them, but also the system and how it can turn out great for everyone if there is just some common sense injected into the system that protects the rights of the patient and not the insurance companies and the institutions. If you or a loved one have been severely injured or killed by suspected medical malpractice then it is important that you find experienced council that can clearly explain your rights and represent you in your fight to protect those rights. Call Phillips Law Firm for a consultation on your legal options.

Phillips Law Firm can help you with your Medical Malpractice claim.

At Phillips Law Firm our lawyers are dedicated to getting you justice and compensation you deserve. Call Phillips Law Firm at 1-800-708-6000, we are waiting to assist you 24/7, offering a free case evaluation. Remember our no fee promise. If we do not recover anything for you, you do not owe us an attorney fee It is important to act immediately. Do not let the window of opportunity for your case close as all cases have statues of limitations. You deserve justice and we are here to help.

Visit our Medical Malpractice main page for more information.
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